by Michael Dean Thompson
Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) recently signed into law HB 1871, which allows people convicted of certain nonviolent crimes to be eligible to vote while on parole. The new law took effect on August 28, 2026. According to estimates provided by The Sentencing Project, …
by Michael Dean Thompson
When ProPublica and WPLN Public Radio of Nashville looked into Wayne Halfway House (WHH), a private company that runs juvenile prisons across Tennessee, they found the company failed to follow the law and report the abuse occurring within their facilities. Employee interviews revealed that …
by Michael Dean Thompson
When the Prison Policy Initiative (PPI) surveyed state, federal and DC prison policies to understand how incarcerated women are treated for menopause, they found an astonishing lack of data. Yet, as of 2023, 18% of women incarcerated in state and federal prisons were 50 …
by Michael Dean Thompson
Colorado’s prisons are experiencing overcrowding and have been for some time. In August 2025, the number of free beds fell below 3% for more than 30 days and has largely remained there.
Governor Jared Polis (D) would like to see two new prisons …
by Michael Dean Thompson
A history of incarceration of any kind has a significant impact on both life expectancy and the health and wellbeing of older adults, according to two studies reviewed by the Prison Policy Initiative (PPI). The studies add to the growing body of evidence that …
by Michael Dean Thompson
Jon Ponder, founder and CEO of the nonprofit Hope for Prisoners (HFP), was himself a former felon who served time for three bank robberies. He has since been pardoned by both the state of Nevada and President Donald Trump (R) in 2020. When a …
by Michael Dean Thompson
Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, forcing government institutions, via Title II, to accommodate people with disabilities. While it was not until 1998 that the United States Supreme Court clarified the law applied to prisons in PA DOC v. Yeskey,118 …
by Michael Dean Thompson
Detainees in the Baltimore jail filed a lawsuit in 1976 over conditions of their confinement and medical care, and the case runs on. Five years later, the lawsuit was brought into a class action that resulted in a decree. The case continued to be …
by Michael Dean Thompson
For people incarcerated in the Kentucky Department of Corrections (DOC), communications with the outside world have been getting more difficult. Prisons within Kentucky have been restricting or eliminating tablet use, citing ongoing security concerns due to staffing shortages.
There is no single overriding …
by Michael Dean Thompson
ryna’s Law was passed in 2025 after the brutal murder of Iryna Karutska, a Ukrainian refugee, on a Charlotte, North Carolina light rail train. The law, HB 307, restricts pretrial release of violent offenders …
